


Database

by kaijoskopycat



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Library AU, aokiseweek
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-10
Updated: 2014-06-10
Packaged: 2018-02-03 03:17:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1729067
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaijoskopycat/pseuds/kaijoskopycat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aomine is a sheltered librarian who pulls his head out of his books when he finds his ideal character in Kise Ryouta</p><p>Day 3 of <a href="http://aokiseweek.tumblr.com/">AoKise Week</a> on Tumblr. Prompt: Change/Learning</p>
            </blockquote>





	Database

_How do I tell them I'm out of work when my job was so..._

The door creaked open and his sister stood in the entryway, startled by the appearance of the blond on their doorstep. "Er... Ryouta?" 

Kise took a step back. He hadn't checked the time when he walked up to the door, but he was almost certain he'd been pacing back and forth outside for almost an hour already. He'd gone over every possible way to say, "I'm out of work" and he still couldn't decide what to say when the door finally opened. 

"Ryouta, I thought you had an interview today." She paused and stuck her head out the door, turning it every which way. 

"There's no one with me." 

"So no interview?"

"No."

"Then what–"

"I lost my job." 

The silence that followed was so thick he could almost feel it brushing against his skin. 

"Well, maybe 'lost my job' isn't the right term. I kind of screwed up. I missed an important photo shoot with a very high-end client. I tried to talk to them about it, but they weren't having it and they kind of contacted my agency and asked for another model, but refused to offer the high amount they had for me. I lost the agency money, lost myself all the money, and they told me I needed to take a break. They took on some kid who they're gonna work half to death over the summer until he has to return to school and drop out of the job. It really wasn't fair when you think about it because it was one job and–"

"Ryouta, are you serious? You know you can't miss things like that in your line of work."

Kise's arms dropped to his sides. He hadn't realized he'd been holding them up, wildly gesturing as he spoke, until he was forced to lower them in his silence. He sighed. Explaining the reason behind his sudden unemployment to his eldest sister was fruitless. She was the one who encouraged him to pursue a career in the modeling industry and she placed a lot of stock in his appearance and dedication to the craft. In her eyes, it was his fault he'd been let go. 

"What are you even doing here? Don't you have an apartment? And what are you going to do for work? I hope you don't plan on lazing your summer away when you're perfectly capable of being productive."

Kise waved his hand dismissively and pushed past her to enter the house. "Yeah, yeah. I don't know what i'm doing yet, but right now I'm taking a break because I deserve it." 

"Ryouta!"

She had always been the hardest working out of all of them. He got a lot of his own dedication from her, learning how to be dependable and how to manage the busyness of his ever-changing schedule. For that, he was grateful. But right now, he didn't want to be berated. He wanted someone to rub his back and tell him he'd get his job back soon. It might have been a naive desire, but he wanted it nonetheless. Growing up, he'd been babied because he was the youngest and the only boy. A pat on the back and encouraging words had always been there when he needed them. And right now he knew just who to go to in order to get them. 

"Mom!" 

* * *

His parents took the news surprisingly well. His father had reprimanded him for missing such an important appointment, but he also ranted and raved about the agency letting go of one of its "best models" ( _his words_ _, not mine_ ). His mother had offered the encouraging back pat and soothing words he'd been looking for. They made him his favorite soup and let him spend the night in his old room before sending him off with a small box of mochi, one of his favorite sweets as a child. 

* * *

Once home, he fell onto his couch to flip through channels. Despite having every channel possible, he found there wasn't a single show or movie that he wanted to watch. With the television off, the room was too quiet. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. He couldn't even remember the last time he had a free day with absolutely nothing to do. 

"Ah!" He tugged his phone out of his back pocket and re-read a text his senpai had sent him earlier in the day.
    
    
     **Received from: Senpai ( 〜^∇^)〜  
    **[text]: Don't complain to me, idiot. You lost your own damn job. Why don't you use the time to educate yourself. I bet you didn't even know there was a library only a few blocks away from your apartment. How about spending some time there so you don't fail anymore tests? ****  
    

Kasamatsu always did have a way with words. In high school, he had encouraged Kise to join the basketball team, knowing about the blond's innate ability to learn by sight alone. But Kise's grades had always been lacking. He had no motivation to study and his modeling career always took precedence over schoolwork. He was making money. To him, school was secondary.

Then he entered college and, by some miraculous bout of luck, got into the same one as Kasamatsu. The basketball team was small and needed players with skill or ones willing to take on the challenge to build that skill in a short amount of time. Kise considered for quite some time before finally agreeing to join. However, he was forced to bring up his grades if he wanted to maintain a spot on the court instead of warming his seat on the bench. 

His grades could still use some work. He didn't find basketball motivating enough to warrant the time it took to press his nose into books he couldn't care less about. As Kasamatsu had assumed, he learned fast, and soon surpassed every member on the team. No game was a challenge and any challenge posed could be copied and made his own. 

With his senpai's insistence, he remained on the team, despite the numerous times he was benched due to his disappointing grades. He figured he might as well make some attempt to learn while he had the time before he returned to the modeling agency and let that consume his life once more. 

"Only a few blocks away, huh?" He mused aloud. Kasamatsu was right. He had no idea he lived so close to a library, let alone one so impressively large–a fact he learned after venturing out of his apartment to locate it. 

"Wow!" He slowly glided up the smoothly paved walkway. The flowers that lined the entry looked freshly watered and well maintained. They even had small stones engraved with quotes from famous authors of all types of literature. "This place is like a book museum." 

He pushed open the glass doors and was instantly bathed in the hushed silence of the library. It was a feeling he had never been all that fond of. The jubilant blond craved sound. Working in a fast paced environment had made it nearly impossible for him to sit still for long periods of time and he often found he'd comment aloud to himself instead of allowing his thoughts to roam freely, but silently, inside his head. 

The librarian at the desk didn't even look up when he came in. The dark blue hair on the top of his head was all Kise was greeted with. He glanced from side to side, but there were so many doors and more than one hallway. Some signs said the same things and he wasn't sure if the Japanese History he was looking for was to his right or if it was up the stairs to his left. 

He slowly made his way up to the desk and cleared his throat to get the attention of the dark skinned male who sat there. The man slowly lifted his head and those piercing blue eyes, a color that matched the disheveled hair, stole his breath away. He'd never seen eyes like that before. Kise found that he was involuntarily leaning forward and, before he could make a fool of himself, he pressed his hand against the edge of the desk to keep himself upright as he spoke. 

"I was.... uh... looking for Japanese History." He followed the strong line of the man's jaw down his throat and to the triangle of exposed skin on his chest. He tried not to stare too long before darting to the right to catch sight of his name tag. "Er... Aomine-san, I was hoping you could point me in the right direction." 

"Depends on what kind of history you're lookin' for." 

Kise reeled internally and took a step back with a shake of his head. "To be honest... I don't really know exactly what part of history I'm looking for."  _That drawl..._ "I guess there's a lot I have to learn. But maybe if you could tell me... uhm... what direction I can go for... for certain subjects."  _Why am I stuttering?_

Aomine's lips twitched in the barest hint of a smirk. "Japanese history subjects?" He slowly closed the book in front of him and Kise found himself watching the way those forearms flexed when Aomine pushed himself to his feet. "Or... _other_ subjects?"

Kise swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. "Japanese history... just Japanese history."  _Why did he have to say it like that?_

"Guess you're lucky then." He chuckled, a sound so deep it rumbled through Kise's ears and hummed across his skin, leaving goosebumps in it's wake. "Japanese history was my best subject back in high school." He slowly stepped around the desk. He was only a few centimeters taller than Kise, but his shoulders were broader, his arms more impressive and, though he wore a shirt that was a little too big for his stature, Kise could tell there were well-defined muscles that rippled throughout the rest of his body. "Since you're new here," He paused and cocked his head at the blond. "You are new, right?"

Kise nodded. "Er... yeah. Never been here before."  _Pretty sure I'd remember you_. 

Aomine grinned, flashing all those dazzling white teeth. "Great. Then I'll give you a nice, long, private tour of the entire library so you won't find yourself getting lost." 

Kise returned the grin with one of his own and nodded once again. Aomine took that as enough of an answer to start and beckoned Kise forward with a wave of his hand. _So I won't get lost?_ _I think I already am._

* * *

The tour was  _very_ thorough and left Kise wondering if Aomine did this with all new library-goers or if he was a special case. He could still feel his skin tingling from the "accidental" brushes when Aomine reached around him to point to the way the shelves were marked by author name, or when he teasingly bumped his shoulder against Kise's when the blond asked if they had internet. He could still hear that deep laugh, quiet enough so it wouldn't disturb, but loud enough to leave Kise's ears ringing and begging to hear the sound again. 

They returned to the front desk and Aomine swung himself around the opposite end and fell back into his chair. "So, how about you check out now?" He grinned, gesturing toward the books in Kise's arms. 

"Right. I would, but I don't actually have a library card." He placed the small stack of books on the surface of the desk. "New here, remember?"

A dark brow rose and those lips that Kise found himself watching twitched into a faint smirk. "You don't have one, do you?" He shivered as those eyes raked across his body. "But I do. So I can... check things out."

"Er..." Kise palmed his nape and his eyes darted toward the computer in front of Aomine. "It might be helpful for me to have my own since I'll probably be back for more."  _I'm definitely coming back as long as you're here._

Aomine chuckled and pulled Kise's books toward him with a conceding nod. "Right, right. It'd be a damn shame not to see you return." The scanner beeped as he ran the first barcode through it. "With the books, I mean." He added as an afterthought.

"With the books, yeah." 

"Name?"

"What?"

"Name." Aomine's eyes pulled away from the screen. "For the library card."

Kise ran his fingers through his hair and laughed, an embarrassed, breathy sound. "Oh, right. It's Kise. Kise Ryouta."

Aomine's fingers raced across the keyboard like he'd been doing this his whole life. Kise could see him hesitate and had a feeling his knew what would come next. 

"Kise Ryouta?" Aomine's eyebrows pinched together and he pursed his lips in obvious thought. "Where have I heard that name before?" He turned those captivating eyes on Kise once again and took a good, long look at his pretty, flawless face. "Ah!" He tapped his fingers on the edge of the desk. "You're that model. Shit, you're famous, aren't you?"

Kise waved is hands in front of him, creating a X with his arms to silence the man. "Not right now. I'm nothing at the moment." He sighed and shook his head, eyes darting every which way on the off chance some die hard fan decided to dart out of one of the many halls that surrounded them. "I'm on a temporary leave. Though my booker did just leave a few messages about small jobs I could pick up during it."

"Is that so? What'd ya do? Screw the photographer or something?"

Kise's cheeks flushed at least five shades of red. "Eeeehhh? No! No! What would make you think that?"

There was a mischievous glint in Aomine's eyes "Methinks the lady dost protest too much." 

He wanted to hit him. Kise wanted to step around the desk and slap Aomine upside the head. "I'm not a lady, baka!" He snapped, vaguely wondering how it was so easy to banter with someone he met only a half an hour ago. "Shut up. I stood up some fancy-pants client and now I'm paying for it so I gotta take a break until things blow over. Word travels fast in the modeling industry..."

"Shit," Aomine put things so elegantly. "That sucks. So you're spending you're time reading instead? Good. Reading is good for you. Books are like medicine and help eat up time without wasting it." 

Kise smiled. "You read a lot?"

"No. Not at all." Aomine deadpanned with a roll of his eyes. "I only quote Shakespeare because I've never read a single one of his works." 

Kise still wanted to hit him, but he couldn't stop smiling. "Can I get my library card or what?" He took the card from Aomine's outstretched hand and pulled the books back into his arms. Flashing his new card like he could pay with it, he smiled and turned to leave. "Maybe next time I'll check out some Shakespeare to see how accurate your quote was." 

Aomine lifted a hand in a lazy wave. "Next time..." He smirked. "There are a lot of things you can _check out_ , Kise." 

 _I've already checked out what I wanted to, Aomine_.

* * *

Kise started spending so many days at the library that his sisters, his parents, even his senpai thought there was something wrong with him. Their Kise never spent time in the library. Their Kise was practically allergic to books. But every time Kasamatsu texted him, or his sisters tried to call, Kise would say, "Can't talk. At the library right now," leaving them in baffled silence. 

He wasn't necessarily going to the library to learn anymore. Unless learning about the librarian was considered expanding his knowledge. Every day he had the time to do so, he would venture out of his apartment and find himself at the closest table to Aomine's desk. The dark-skinned man would lift his eyes from his paperwork to catch a curious, golden gaze. He would chuckle to himself and let their eyes meet a time or two more before pushing himself away from his desk to take the seat across from Kise.

Sometimes he'd question him about the books he'd chosen to read. Sometimes he'd make fun of the blond's choices, rolling his eyes and pushing them to the side with a scoff and few choice words about the authors. On more than one occasion, he pulled some of his favorite books for Kise to read. From his selection, Kise learned that he favored sports fiction and the occasional romance novel.

"Not that gross erotica shit," he grumbled when he handed Kise a book that was blatantly about a teenage relationship. "I don't read the bad porn."

"So you only read the good porn then?" Kise had teased, lightly pushing at Aomine's foot with his own. 

The man kicked back with a grin. "Damn straight." 

The novel turned out to be about love, but also about cancer. Kise was captivated from the very first line and it left him as a mess of tears on his bed the moment he read the last one.

"It kinda lets you know that," Aomine palmed his nape and averted his eyes, pretending to check his desk for someone when Kise knew he was too embarrassed to meet his eyes while he admitted something so sappy. "I don't know... that even if your time here isn't infinite, there's someone out there who will love you even if its only for a minute or two."

Kise felt something swell in his chest. It was a feeling he couldn't put into words and he clutched at the fabric over his heart as he felt the prickling burn of tears threaten the corners of his eyes. "Aominecchi is a hopeless romantic." He choked on the last word as Aomine palmed his face and pushed him backward, nearly knocking him out of his chair.

"Shut the hell up, baka," he mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "You read the other one?"

" _On the Devil's Court_?" _  
_

"No. The fucking fairy tale book I gave you." _  
_

Kise blinked at him and Aomine rolled his eyes.

"Yes, that one. The basketball one." 

"Oh yeah! I really liked that one too." He paused and ran his fingers around the hoop on the cover of the book. "You like basketball, Aominecchi?"

"Eh? Yeah, I guess. I play some street ball with a few friends of mine sometimes, but I've never played on a team before." He shrugged his shoulders. "Always been a bit too busy to join sports."

"You can always make room for sports in your schedule, baka." Kise replied with a soft laugh. "I mean, I model and play basketball for the college team. I'm sure you can find the time to–"

"Wait... you play?" 

"Yeah. Of course I play!"

"Holy shit, Kise! Why the hell didn't you tell me?"

Kise shrugged. To be honest, the fact that he played had never come up once in their conversation. Aomine had only just now volunteered the information about his street ball when Kise questioned him because of his book choices. 

"Well, uh..." Aomine's voice had lowered to nearly a whisper. It might have been because a small study group had crowded a table nearby, or maybe he found it as a way to keep the flush on his cheeks at bay. "We should play sometime." 

The blond's cheeks brightened and his eyes sparkled with instant excitement. He felt a warm hand against his shoulder and looked up to catch Aomine pressing his forefinger against his lips as if to silent the outburst he expected from his suggestion. Kise grinned and nodded his head. He kept on nodding it, a little too enthusiastically, until Aomine pressed a finger to his forehead to stop the motion.

"Christ, calm down," he whispered, despite the faint smile that ghosted across his lips. "How about tomorrow night?"

"Works for me!"  _I've got all the free time in the world and I think I'd rather spend it with you than home alone on my couch._

Aomine reached forward and ruffled Kise's hair before returning to his desk. Kise didn't even bother to hide the fact that he was staring. Aomine looked up and shook his head, mouthing the word, "Tomorrow."

Kise's grin widened as he mouthed back his promise, "Tomorrow."

* * *

Kise played basketball with Aomine fully expecting to win every game. By Aomine's admittance, he had never played in a real game before and never played anything more than street ball every so often with a few friends. Kise played on a college team. He'd learned from some of the best. He copied moves that were difficult for regular players to counter. He assumed he could fake, feint, shoot, and move faster than Aomine's unpracticed self would be able to.

When he lost the first game, all Kise could do was gape. Aomine was faster than he was and he never missed a single shot. And he could shoot from anywhere on the court without ever setting up for it. Each one was more unconventional than the last– _formless_. His reflexes were nearly animalistic. He could shoot and score before Kise even realized the ball had been swiped from his grasp. No matter what Kise did, he just couldn't quite perfect an imitation of those unorthodox moves.

They played  _all day,_ until the sky was littered with stars and street lamps that dotted the pathway in the park remained as their only other source of light. Despite the monumental losses in the beginning, near the end they reached a point difference of only a few baskets. 

Aomine was the first person Kise consistently lost to. And he  _loved_ it.

"Oh my god..." Kise panted, as he fought to catch his breath. He collapsed upon the court, Aomine sitting beside him. His cheek pressed against the other's thigh as he turned to meet those dark eyes. "Aominecchi... you're so  _amazing."_

Aomine snorted and reached over to ruffle Kise's hair. The gesture had become a habit of his and Kise found that he liked the way those fingers felt sliding through his soft, blond strands. "Baka." Aomine muttered, breathless as Kise. "You ain't too bad yourself, Kise."

"No, but you're like–"

"I get it."

"And your shots are just so–"

"Yeah, I know."

"My god..."

"Kise..."

"Do you even know how fast you are? I mean–"

"Faster than you."

"Well, yeah, but everything you did was so–"

Kise fell silent when Aomine quieted him in the only way he could think of.

Aomine's lips were warm and slightly chapped. He didn't seem to know what he was doing, but that didn't deter him from continuing and certainly did nothing to stop Kise from returning the kiss. When Aomine pulled away, Kise blinked rapidly as if trying to clear the fog that blanketed through his mind. All other thoughts prior seemed insignificant to the feel of Aomine's lips against his own. 

"Aominecchi... what was that?"

Aomine gave a noncommittal shrug. "Just felt right, I guess." 

"Felt right..." Kise echoed. He slowly lowered his head, resting it against Aomine's thigh instead of the court. Aomine made no move to push him off, instead turning his attention to the stars above. Kise watched as his chest rose and fell like he was still fighting to catch his breath. His own chest was doing the same, but now he wasn't sure if the breathlessness came from their one-on-ones or if something else stole his breath away.

* * *

Whatever their relationship became after the initial kiss was still a mystery to Kise. They never put a label on it. But Aomine started pulling Kise between the shelves to steal kisses. He wrapped the blond in a warm embrace every time he walked him to the front door of his apartment. They shared milkshakes, went to dinner together, played basketball whenever possible. 

Aomine even spent the night at Kise's apartment a few times. The first time he slept alone on the couch while Kise fell asleep in his bedroom. The second time they accidentally fell asleep on the mound of blankets Kise had piled on the living floor for one of their movie nights. The third time Kise invited Aomine into his bed. There was more than enough room for the two of them, but he still found himself curled up against Aomine's side with a strong arm wrapped tightly around his waist. 

They both kept their relationship under wraps. Kise had no idea how to breach the subject of his feelings for another man, especially with his family members. He wasn't even certain that Aomine felt the same. He may steal kisses from the blond, but he never uttered anything that would connote attraction beyond the physical kind. 

But Kise was content with the way things were. He was content with the stolen kisses and the warmth of Aomine's embrace. He was content with the stolen glances, the flirtatious smiles, content with falling asleep in one another's arms. He didn't need a label and he didn't need anyone else to know because he was happy with Aomine at his side.

* * *

Kise's phone screen lit up as he sat at his usual table in the library. 
    
    
     **Received from: Senpai (〜^∇^)〜**  
    
    [text]: Where are you?  
    
    [text]: Did you forget i set up a practice game today?  
    
    [text]: i know its the summer, but i also know you don't have a photo shoot so dont you dare try that excuse with me

Kise always had his phone out when he was at the library, but always on silent. He claimed he left it out to make sure he didn't miss anything from his agent, but the real reason was because Aomine would send a text or two when he got bored behind the desk. It had been quite some time since Kasamatsu had contacted him though and, truth be told, Kise had completely wiped the text informing him about the practice game from his mind, swept away in the whirlwind that was Aomine. 
    
    
     **Sent to : Senpai (〜^∇^)〜**  
    
    [text]: i'm at the library!  
    
    [text]: studying like you told me too!  
    
    [text]: im sorry i forgot about the game  （ﾉ´д｀）

He placed the phone on the table and pushed his study glasses up his nose. Ever since he first started modeling, he wore a pair of lens-free glasses when he studied, convinced they helped him retain information better. It also helped that they looked good on him too. 

Instead of returning his attention to the books in front of him, he propped his chin in his hand and eyed Aomine as he scanned books from the drop box back into the system. Despite the bored expression, Kise loved to watch him work, liked to look at his attractive face. In a matter of minutes, Aomine felt that insistent gaze and finally pulled his eyes away from the screen to meet those golden hues. He grinned and pretended to push his glasses up his face, mouthing the word  _nerd,_ which left Kise with his hand clamped over his mouth to suppress his laughter. 

He hadn't heard anyone come up behind him until he felt the harsh slap against the back of his head. Aomine moved like he was going to come to his rescue, but Kise held up a hand to stop him. There was only one person who would greet him in such a rough manner. 

"Neeeh, senpai!" he whined, glancing over his shoulder to find a scowling Kasamatsu. "Why couldn't you just say hi like a normal person?"

Kasamatsu leaned forward, nearly resting his chin on Kise's shoulder. "I thought you were studying," he growled against the blond's ear. "But instead I come in here to find you making googly eyes at the librarian." He slapped Kise again before moving around the table to take the seat across from him. 

"But I am studying!" Kise waved his arms over the books, gesturing toward his notes and pointing to the glasses on his face. 

Kasamatsu frowned and reached across the table to pull them off. "Dammit, Kise, you don't even need those to study." He placed them on the table and rolled his eyes. 

Kise pouted. "But I look so good in them."

Kasamatsu kicked his shin beneath the table and pushed himself out of the chair. "The next time I schedule a practice game," He reached forward and flicked Kise's forehead. "You better be there. No excuses." He walked toward the door, waving a goodbye to Kise over his shoulder before he disappeared. 

Kise sighed and started gathering his things. He might have forgotten about the practice game, but he didn't forget the photo shoot he had in a few hours. He'd have to allow himself the time to prepare for it. 

He made his way up to the desk with a single novel, handing it to Aomine with a smile. "Another one from your list." 

Aomine grabbed the book and scanned it in silence. He didn't say a word as he returned it to Kise's outstretched hand. 

Kise frowned and slowly slipped the book into his bag along with the notebook he'd been using. "Uh... I was thinking that maybe after my shoot we could go play some–"

"Nope."

"W-what?"

"I said no."

Kise took a step back, golden brow rising in confusion. "But yesterday you said that we could–"

"Yeah, well, that was yesterday. Things change when you learn things."

"Learn things? What are you talking about?"

Aomine's eyes narrowed and the look was so fierce that Kise flinched the moment it landed on him. "Must be nice, huh?" He'd never heard such a venomous tone come from Aomine before. "To have someone on the side when your boyfriend is too busy for you?"

Kise's jaw dropped. "I–you think that..."

"Don't try to lie to me and say otherwise. I saw how close you guys were over there."

"Because he's my senpai! He's the captain of my basketball team!"

"Yeah, and you do the same thing with him as you do with me, right? The whole little game of footsie under the damn table."

Kise reeled. "He kicked me! That wasn't footsie... he was mad because I missed–"

"A date?"

"–a practice game."

"Whatever."

"Aominecchi, he has someone else. I don't understand..."

"Yeah? Neither do I." Aomine snapped. "So he has someone else too? You guys are okay with sharing? That's fucking great. Must feel great for you to have two people who care about you, but what about the other person? Huh?" Aomine lowered his gaze to the papers in front of him to avoid seeing the tears that glossed over Kise's eyes. "You probably don't even care, do you?"

Kise took a few steps back and shook his head. "Of course I care about you... I..." He fell silent. Nothing he could say would offer the concrete proof Aomine needed to know that he was the only one. "I'll see you Friday, Aominecchi. And I'll show you... I'll prove it to you." 

_I'll prove that you're the only_ one...

He stumbled out the door and pulled his phone from his pocket, furiously wiping his eyes with his sleeves.
    
    
     **Sent to : Senpai (〜^∇^)〜**  
    
    [text]: i know i have no right to ask for a favor after missing the practice game  
    
    [text]: but i really need you to do this for me  
    
    [text]: i need you to bring your boyfriend to the library on friday  
    
    [text]: i'll explain everything. i promise.  
    
    [text]: just please... help me senpai

* * *

Kise continued to frequent the library over the next few days. Aomine did not spare any extra glances (at least, none that Kise caught), nor did he offer words beyond what was necessary to complete check-outs or returns. He even made the blond pay a late fee for one of the novels he returned a few days late. Yet Kise was persistent. He showed up every day at the same time, sat at the same table, pulled books to study or a novel from the long list of recommendations Aomine had left for him. 

When Friday came around, Kise worried that Kasamatsu wouldn't show. If his text was any indication, he was less than happy with the blond's request. Then Kise's phone screen brightened and he snatched it off the table to read.
    
    
     **Received from : Senpai (〜^∇^)〜**  
    
    [text]: We're on the way  
    
    [text]: You owe me big time  
    
    [text]: This stupid bookworm is never going to let me leave there

Kise sighed, relieved that his _senpai_ had decided to come through for him. He was worried that he'd hold a grudge about the practice game and choose to punish Kise for his forgetfulness, but it appeared his innate ability to act as an older brother kicked in and forced him to agree.

He glanced at Aomine and watched as the man studiously ignored him. The way those broad shoulders tensed the moment he glanced in his direction was comforting. At least he knew that Aomine could still feel his gaze, as he felt Aomine's during the very rare occasions he stole a quick peek in the blond's direction. There was no way he could deny something put on display in front of him, right?

The whoosh of the revolving door caught his attention and he saw Kasamatsu step into the entryway accompanied by... no one. Kise dropped his pen.  _But he was supposed to bring..._ His face fell and felt the sting of tears threaten to spill. Hastily, he wiped them away and strained his ears to listen.

Kasamatsu walked up to the desk. "Have you seen–"

"Over there." Aomine gestured in Kise's direction with a quick nod of his head, murderous gaze intently trained on Kasamatsu.

"Not that idiot." 

Kise sighed and pressed his cheek against the open page of the book in front of him.

"I'm looking for someone else." Kasamatsu continued.

"Aren't you his–"

"Senpai."

"Yeah. So I've heard." Aomine sneered, returning his attention to the paper in front him. 

Kasamatsu's lips twitched into one of his irritated scowls. Kise half expected him to reach across the desk and smack Aomine's forehead. Kise saw him open his mouth to speak again, when someone stepped up beside him, sliding their arm around his waist. If he was not so absorbed in the outcome of this meeting, he might have found the way Kasamatsu jumped to be rather comical. 

"Why have you kept such a gem of a place hidden from me, Yukio?"

"Don't call me that in public..." Kasamatsu's face burned a bright red.  

Kise saw Aomine freeze the moment he heard the other man's voice.  _Does he know him?_

"Imayoshi..."

"Ah, Aomine. What a surprise to find you here." Imayoshi, to his credit, hid his surprise better than Aomine did. His thin lips spread into a mischievous smile. "So this is the job... the one you wanted to keep secret. It kept you from playing on the team when I asked, didn't it?"

Aomine frowned. "What the hell does it matter?" His eyes darted downward and he stared at those pale, slender fingers braced against Kasamatsu's hip. Even from this distance, Kise knew Imayoshi's fingers would do that thing where they flex, almost possessively, like he assumed the person looking could steal Kasamatsu away with that single glance. "How did you even find this place?"

Imayoshi chuckled, a soft, teasing sound. He lifted his free hand to adjust his glasses as he spoke. "Well, my lovely little Yukio," Kasamatsu grumbled his disapproval. "Excuse me, **_my_**   _boyfriend_ , asked me to accompany him to this library. It must be a date, or something of the sort. He knows how much I  _love_  places like this."

If Kasamatsu's face was red before, now it was like someone had replaced his head with a giant tomato. "Imayoshi... shut up now before I–"

"It appears I've made him angry." There was that laugh again. 

Kise had a hard time focusing on two things at once. The gossip in him was determined to hear the entire conversation. The part of him that wanted this to work, that wanted Aomine to see that Kasamatsu really was just his senpai, that wanted him to see that he was the only one Kise harbored any romantic feelings for, was determined to focus solely on the way those dark features twisted in shock, in confusion, and finally in realization. And it did dawn on him. He stared at that hand, those tight, tense fingers, and Kise knew he understood. 

There was no way Imayoshi would ever share. Sometimes it scared Kise, the way Imayoshi held his _senpai_ , talked about him like he was a possession. But at the same time, Kise could see how much Kasamatsu loved it. He might huff and scowl. He might call Imayoshi an idiot and push him away and grumble about how stupid and clingy he was. But his senpai loved that there was someone who needed him, who wanted him, who loved him so much that he felt the need to tell everyone that Kasamatsu was  _his_ and  _his alone_.

And a part of Kise wanted that too. 

"Look, uh..." Aomine palmed his nape and sighed. "Are you looking for a certain genre? I really can't help you with anything other than that." He paused and pushed papers around his desk, deliberately keeping his eyes trained away from the direction of the blond. Kise could tell in the way he held his body, like he was afraid if he turned even an inch that their eyes would meet. He wanted that, but he didn't want to force anything on Aomine that he wasn't comfortable with. "Unless you need a library card, you might as well go explore."

Imayoshi took the hint, a little too happily, and dragged a grumbling Kasamatsu away.

Now it was just the two of them, literally. There were no teenage study groups at the tables beside Kise. No one asked to sit across from him and every other aisle was currently unoccupied. It was too early for high school kids to be out of class and college students preferred their school libraries to local, private ones. Kise sat alone at his table, cheek still pressed against the book, shoulders weighed down with the unspoken words that hummed through the air between them.

For a long time, Aomine didn't move. He didn't rustle papers. He didn't click around his computer screen to fill the silence. He didn't dig through the recently returned books. He sat still, staring at the doorway. Kise kept his eyes trained on him. He saw the way Aomine's head would start to turn in his direction before he caught himself and turned away again. 

With a sigh, Kise's lifted his head from the table and pushed his chair back with an echoing screech. Now he had Aomine's attention. He started to pack up his things, leaving all the books behind. 

Perhaps his plan had been a flop. Aomine appeared to have no more inclination to speak to him than he had moments before Kasamatsu and Imayoshi came up to the desk. He couldn't sit here knowing he'd tried and failed. 

As he slung his bag over his shoulder, eyes turned downward as he struggled with a caught zipper, he felt a gentle hand on his upper arm. His first reaction was to flinch and that hand retreated. Then he heard a soft, pleading whisper. "Can we play some one-on-one tonight?"

He was not certain he wanted to meet those dark eyes. The first time they met, Aomine had joked about not getting lost. Kise could navigate the library as well as Aomine could now. But he never failed to get lost in those eyes.

With a resigned sigh, he lifted his glassy, golden hues. Aomine's gaze wavered. Uncertainty, and perhaps a little fear, flitted through those dark blue orbs. Kise tentatively reached forward and ran his fingers down that strong jawline. He felt Aomine's jaw clench beneath his touch, but pulled back only when he reached his chin. "I have a photo shoot, a short one, later tonight. I can meet you around 10:30. Is that okay?"

"Any time works for me."

"10:30 then. I'll be there."

"So will I."

* * *
    
    
    **Sent to : Aominecchi** (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧  
    
    [text]: shoot got out later than i thought it would  
    
    [text]: but i'm still on the way.  
    
    [text]: i'll only be another 15 min.  
    
    [text]: are you still gonna be there?

Kise cursed the photographer for being so inexperienced. He knew he did this to himself, this temporary lull in high-paying, experienced jobs. If only he had marked the right date on his calendar. With a sigh, he pointed out the park right across the street from the library. The taxi driver sped over to the curb and Kise tossed him more than enough to pay for the ride and then some.
    
    
     **Received from : Aominecchi (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧**  
    
    [text]: still here  
    
    [text]: thought it might've gone late  
    
    [text]: ill wait

He was so certain Aomine would have left the park by now. It was a few minutes after 11:00. He had promised to meet the man more than half an hour ago. Yet as he made his way further into the park, he could hear the hollow thump of a basketball hitting the court. 

"Aominecchi," Kise shrugged off his blazer and dropped his athletic bag to the ground. He still wore the clothing from the photo shoot, preoccupied with making it to the court as close to on-time as possible. "I'm sorry I'm late." He kicked off the dress shoes he wore and replaced them with flexible basketball shoes he always wore when he played against Aomine.

"S'no big deal." Aomine muttered, flinging the ball behind him as he turned to acknowledge Kise for the second time in so many days. He really looked at the blond too and Kise could feel those eyes following his every move as he shamelessly changed into a tank top and basketball shorts. Thankfully it was too late for anyone else to be venturing through the park.

Kise ran his fingers through his hair, breaking the seal of hairspray and other products. "Let's play." He bent his legs and rocked from side to side, defensive.

Aomine retrieved the ball when it bounced back to him after swishing perfectly through the basket. He gripped it between both hands, biting the inside of his cheek as he contemplated. It was a habit Kise had eventually grown to notice whenever the other was remotely nervous or something worried him. Eventually he let the ball loose and started to dribble. He made the first shot easily and the game started.

They played a few rounds, less than usual, before Aomine collapsed first; a rarity. Kise slowly lowered himself to the ground, but kept his distance. Aomine's eyes swopped across the space between them, and turned his gaze downward. It pained Kise to see Aomine's eyes tighten like that, looking so dejected. Reluctantly, he moved a few inches closer, and then a few more until their thighs pressed together. 

Aomine visibly relaxed, but he made no move to touch Kise any more than that. "Listen," He started, voice soft, hesitant. "I may have..." He palmed the nape of his neck and turned an apologetic gaze toward Kise. "...overreacted." 

Kise nodded. 

"I–" Aomine's head fell back and he sighed heavily. "I really don't know how to do this." Kise's eyebrow rose at the admittance. "It all seems a lot easier in books and... I guess I just didn't realize how attached I could get to someone." 

"But I'm attached to you too, Aominecchi."

"Yeah, but do you hear how easy it was for you to say that shit?" Aomine sighed. "This isn't like me. I didn't... you probably had a lot of friends growing up, right?"

Kise shrugged.

"I'm not all that social, in case you didn't notice."

Kise stifled a soft chuckle. "You seemed pretty social when you first met me."

"That's because it's you. You're different. You made me  _want_ to fucking talk." 

"I did?" Kise's face flushed a deep shade of red. 

"Yeah. And it was so easy for you to talk to me too and I liked that, I guess." He paused and ran his palms across his thighs. "But then when I saw how easy it was for you to talk to  _him_... I just got–" 

The pregnant pause that stretched between them made Kise whisper, "Jealous?"

Aomine scowled.

"It's okay to admit it, Aominecchi."

"You're the closest friend I have, Kise." Aomine sidestepped the subject of jealousy.

Kise sighed, but chose not to push him further. "What about Imayoshi?"

"That asshole." Aomine rolled his eyes. "He was persistent. I don't even know if you could call that a friendship. He wanted me to join the basketball team for my high school, but I had this place to deal with. I didn't think I could find the time."

"Eh? But I played basketball and modeled and I was still able to get all my schoolwork done!"

Aomine shot him a pointed look.

Kise caved. "Okay," He smiled sheepishly. "Maybe not  _all_  of it."

"But I'm not you, Kise." Aomine sighed and slowly reached over to place his hand on Kise's thigh. "This place..." He pointed in the general direction of the library. "It started out small, I guess. It used to be a bookstore. My Gram sold used books, but more and more friends and family started borrowing instead of buying and she had money left over from my granddad's death, like the money she came into. She had enough to remodel and it turned into a private library, or something. I don't know all the damn details." He ran his palm down his face. "I never bothered to ask. I just know this was an important place to her. I grew up with these stupid books."

Kise angled his head to the side and rested his cheek against Aomine's shoulder.

"I don't feel like I can leave the damn place." 

"But that was your grannie's dream, her life." Kise said softly. "Don't you think she'd want you to do what makes you happy?"

"It doesn't make me unhappy." Aomine started drawing circles on Kise's knee with the tip of his finger. "Basketball makes me happier." 

Kise smiled and turned to press a kiss against the warm skin of Aomine's shoulder.

Aomine lifted his free hand off the ground and threaded his fingers through Kise's hair. "You... make me happier." 

"And you can play basketball with me." Kise offered with a faint chuckle.

"Kise," Aomine paused and considered. "Ryouta...."

Kise froze, his eyes wide. "W-what?"

"Was that too weird? I probably shouldn't have–"

"No! No, I liked it."

"Ryouta." Aomine repeated, his lips pulling into a smile. "I like it too." 

"Aominecchi, I don't even know your first name." He learned Aomine's family name from the tag he wore upon his chest. Aomine had never offered any other name and Kise was content enough with his nickname not to ask for another. 

Aomine snorted. "You don't? What an asshole."

Kise lightly slapped his thigh and turned his head to face him, eyes large and expectant.

"Alright, alright." Aomine gently tugged on his hair. "Shit. Don't gotta pull the puppy look with me." He leaned forward and brushed his lips across Kise's as he said, "Daiki."

"Daiki..." Kise whispered in return, closing the distance between their lips. 

"I'm sorry I was a dick, Ryouta." Aomine breathed between kisses. "I was stupid." Another kiss. "I jumped to a fucking conclusion." And another. "I was _stupidly_ jealous." He pulled his lips across Kise's jaw. "I said really shitty things, didn't I?"

Kise nodded, too breathless to respond. 

"I'm sorry I said those shitty things, Ryouta."

"I forgive you, Daiki." Kise gasped. "Now stop apologizing and say my name again."

Aomine chuckled, the sound rumbling through him and humming against Kise's body. "Ryouta."

* * *

Things got easier over the next few weeks. Aomine learned to be less abrasive when he talks to Kasamatsu. Though Kise can tell that he's not his senpai's biggest fan, he's glad that Aomine is trying and secretly hoped its for his sake that he is. 

He even tried a few double dates with the other couple, though after the third, Aomine told Kise he can't stand to watch Imayoshi and his PDA and refused to go out with them again. Kise couldn't help but agree. As much as they touched each other in private, they kept mostly to themselves when prying eyes were around. He was somewhat appalled that Kasamatsu let him get away with it, but then again, his violent reactions never seemed to deter Imayoshi, but rather encouraged further teasing. 

* * *

Aomine was just as bad as he claimed to be when interacting with other people. When Kise finally came out to his family and admitted to the real reason behind his frequent visits to the library, the younger of the two sisters gasped and whispered, "I knew it" while the other one shook her head and muttered something about how she never believed he was actually "studying". His parents asked a lot of questions, but nothing that made him feel like they wouldn't accept the way he felt toward Aomine. They were reluctant, but soon enough it was their idea to invite Aomine over.

Though the other man protested for weeks–he told Kise he wasn't sure meeting his parents was the brightest idea–he finally caved when Kise whispered, "I love you" one night. Aomine had only ever read those words in the books he coveted. No amount of words could describe the way it felt to hear them and know that the person saying them truly meant every single syllable. He had laid there for longer than necessary and Kise worried that maybe he'd said it too soon. 

Then Aomine whispered back, "I love you too, Ryouta." And it felt even better for him to say it and mean it too. 

* * *

"Aomine-san, Ryouta tells us that you're into basketball." His father mused aloud as they all poked at their food. 

"Er, yeah. I play some street ball here and there." He shrugged as if they subject didn't interest him, but Kise could see how much it did pique his interest and knew he was holding back his excitement. 

"Yeah, he told me that too." His father chuckled and pointed his fork in Aomine's direction. The action made Kise scowl, but his father ignored the look. "You know, he says you're better than he is. I've seen my son play, and I'm not a braggart, but he's one of the best on his team. And you blow him away every game. I'm sure recruiters would kill to pick you up, real game experience or not."

Aomine sat in stunned silence. Kise had brought the subject up more than once to him, and Aomine always answered with a noncommittal shrug or silence. He worried that he'd do the same to his father, but eventually he spoke up. "I haven't really thought about it much... I'd really like to play professionally, but I guess I kinda just thought it was some kinda dream. The ones that don't happen. I have the library and never really thought about leaving it."

"There are millions of people in the world looking for a job. I'm sure it'd be possible to find someone willing enough, someone trustworthy, who can take over there."

Kise wanted to signal for his father to stop. This was a subject even he hadn't broached. He knew the significance of that library. He never thought of suggesting he drop the library job entirely to pursue a hobby. 

"I guess..." Kise could see Aomine's fingers clenching in the fabric of his slacks. He wanted to reach over and grab his hand, squeeze it encouragingly, but he couldn't do that in front of his parents when they'd only just accepted his relationship. Aomine sighed. "I hadn't really thought about that either. I guess its something I could consider. At least, if I didn't make it big, I know I'd have that place to fall back on." 

Kise's eyes widened. Had his father just done what he thought was impossible? Was Aomine actually considering this?

"It never hurts to follow a dream. If you can't reach it, at least you can say you stretched as far as you could."

Aomine sat through the rest of the meal in contemplative silence. He'd smile faintly and answer questions when prompted, but Kise's parents and sisters let him think about the advice he'd just been offered. Though he hesitated to do it, Kise eventually reached over and squeezed Aomine's hand and offered a reassuring smile. Aomine's smile was barely an echo of his usual grin, but he did return the squeeze.

* * *

A few weeks later, Aomine pulled Kise into a corner and kissed him like he was a parched man and Kise was the only body of water for miles around. He left Kise breathless and panting and pulled back only to ravage his pale neck and leave behind a deep red mark. Kise muttered half-hearted words of protest, but Aomine only chuckled and shook his head against Kise's shoulder. The heat from his forehead made Kise sigh in contentment. This warmth would never be stifling, no matter how high the temperature got between them. 

Finally Aomine's shoulders rose and fell in a soft sigh. Kise could tell the difference between the way Aomine sighed now. "What's on your mind, babe?" He liked the nickname and took to it the moment Aomine gave him permission to call him that. 

"I told my parents about the basketball." He turned his head to the side and brushed his nose up the column of Kise's throat. "And about us."

Kise froze. His breath caught in his throat and he wished for nothing more than to see Aomine's face when he continued. Aomine had this frustrating ability to erase all inflection from his voice, leaving Kise with the inability to tell if the news was good or bad.

"My dad wasn't too happy about the basketball." He could feel Aomine's breath against his neck and wished he could feel the outcome in that warmth. "And I guess he kinda already knew about you. He's seen you in the library a lot and he might've caught a few of the kisses when I didn't know he was here." Kise could hear the unapologetic, sheepish grin that Aomine probably wore. "And I don't think he's all that happy about that either, but he can't really do a damn thing about it because he knows I don't give a shit and he can't stop me from being with someone I want to be with."

Kise sighed and tilted his head to press his cheek against Aomine's temple. At the very least, he found comfort in the fact that Aomine's parents wouldn't forbid them from seeing one another. "But what about the basketball?"

"He doesn't think I should go for it, but I'm going to anyway." Aomine slipped his arms around Kise's waist and squeezed the soft skin of his hips. "I told him its something I  _have_ to do. I can't just sit around in this library wondering why the hell I didn't go for it when I had the talent and the means to do so."

Kise's face lit up and Aomine pulled back just in time to catch it. He threw his arms around Aomine's neck and pulled him in for a celebratory kiss. "I can't believe you're really gonna go for it!"

Aomine chuckled and brushed his nose against the blond's. "It's all your doing, Ryouta."

"Eh? My doing?"

Aomine leaned forward, pressing their foreheads together. "I swear, you don't even know how amazing you are." He playfully rolled his eyes and continued, "I searched every goddamn database for someone who could take my breath away, but I could never find what I was looking for in books. I've never been a social butterfly like you. I know I'm hard to deal with sometimes, but you're pretty damn difficult too, with your high-maintenance bullshit." He pressed a finger against Kise's lips to silence the inevitable protest. "But I still love you. And I know you love me too. And goddammit, Ryouta, you're helping me write my own teenage romance novel and it might sound really gay for me to admit it, but its probably my favorite one of all."

Kise's eyes glittered with unshed tears. "Baka Daiki, you sound like a bookish fool. But I love that about you, that and your tough guy side and your unsociable, grumpy side, and your competitive streak and... I love it all." He pulled Aomine forward for another secret kiss behind the shelves they've hidden behind for months on end now. "Let's go play some one-on-one. I wanna see these new moves you're gonna show off to try and become some big shot basketball player."

Aomine snorted and stole another kiss himself. "Pretty sure you've seen them all."

"Then you gotta come up with new ones." Kise said, sliding his hands down Aomine's arms to link their fingers together. "Can't write any new pages without new material."

Aomine squeezed his hands and shook his head. "Baka Ryouta." He pulled Kise out from their hiding spot and waved at his mother who was watching the desk for him. She waved back and smiled at Kise even though Aomine clung to his hand to shamelessly show off their relationship. "Well, you gotta help then." He said as they spun through the revolving doors. "Can't write without my co-author."

Kise grinned and shook his head. His cheeks burned from the sudden burst of cool wind and he was certain his eyes would start tearing, but even a teenage romance needed a little bit of brisk weather. And as Aomine tugged him along behind, Kise secretly hoped he would add, "Sharing jacket with boyfriend" to this page of their story.


End file.
